How American Protestants Fought for Freedom at the Movies

First full-fledged treatment of the role of Protestantism in Hollywood.

Hollywood and Christianity often seem to be at war. Indeed, there is a long list of movies that have attracted religious condemnation, from Gone with the Wind with its notorious "damn," to The Life of Brian and The Last Temptation of Christ. But the reality, writes William Romanowski, has been far more complicated - and remarkable. In Reforming Hollywood, Romanowski, a leading historian of popular culture, explores the long and varied efforts of Protestants to
influence the film industry. He shows how a broad spectrum of religious forces have played a role in Hollywood, from Presbyterians and Episcopalians to fundamentalists and evangelicals. Drawing on personal interviews and previously untouched sources, he describes how mainline church leaders lobbied filmmakers to promote the nation's moral health and, perhaps surprisingly, how they have by and large opposed government censorship, preferring instead self-regulation by both the industry and individual conscience. "It is this human choice," noted one Protestant leader, "that is the basis of our religion." Tensions with Catholics, too, have loomed large—many Protestant clergy feared the
influence of the Legion of Decency more than Hollywood's corrupting power. Romanowski shows that the rise of the evangelical movement in the 1970s radically altered the picture, in contradictory ways. Even as born-again clergy denounced "Hollywood elites," major studios noted the emergence of a lucrative evangelical market. 20th Century-Fox formed FoxFaith to go after the "Passion dollar," and Disney took on evangelical Philip Anschutz as a partner to bring The Chronicles of Narnia to the big screen. William Romanowski is an award-winning commentator on the intersection of religion and popular culture. Reforming Hollywood is his most revealing, provocative, and groundbreaking
work on this vital area of American society.

Readership: Readers interested in movies, religion, and American history.

William Romanowski, Professor of Communication Arts & Sciences, Calvin College

William Romanowski is Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences at Calvin College. His books include Eyes Wide Open: Looking for God in Popular Culture (a 2002 ECPA Gold Medallion Award Winner) and Pop Culture Wars: Religion and the Role of Entertainment in America Life.

"William Romanowski is fair-minded, has a fascinating story to tell, and tells it well" - Tom Aitken, Times Literary Supplement

"[a] thorough, fact-filled account of the interaction between Protestantism and the American cinema" - Christopher R. Brewer, Transpositions

"[a] this labyrinthine history of attempts to regulate the film industry, from the silent era to the present day ... a fascinating history, meticulously researched" - Pat Ashworth, Church Times

Introduction
Chapter 1 Reforming the Movies: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Chapter 2 The Federal Council of Churches Enters the Frame
Chapter 3 Putting a Presbyterian in Charge of Hollywood
Chapter 4 On the Trail of the Serpent: Will Hays and the Protestant Crusade
Chapter 5 Protestants and Hollywood at the Crossroads
Chapter 6 The Worst That Could Happen: A Catholic Legion of "
Chapter 7 One Foot in Hollywood: The Protestant Film Commission
Chapter 8 Movie Consulting-Protestant Style
Chapter 9 High Noon in the Broadcasting and Film Commission
Chapter 10 And the Winner Is: The Protestant Film Awards
Chapter 11 No Longer a Dirty Word: This Film Will Now Be Rated
Chapter 12 A Changing of the Guard
Chapter 13 The Curious Case of Evangelicals
Conclusion
Suggested Readings
Notes
Index

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